Even though she wasn't officially engaged when she saw the ad for the Operation I Do! wedding giveaway, Virginia Knight entered anyway.

Knight, a doctor who specializes in emergency medicine, had been dating Albert Swalla for seven years and marriage was in their future plans. The couple even bought a house together in Bay Park.

But their hazy wedding plans became concrete when they won Operation I Do! a local contest created for military members who were deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation: Enduring Freedom.

The contest was created by Jan Vlcek, a local Army veteran who wanted to express his gratitude to members of the U.S. military.

The prize was an all-expense-paid wedding package. The dress, tuxedo, rings, cake, flowers, catering and even a location were all donated by San Diego wedding vendors.

The offer was too good to pass up and the matter of an absent engagement ring didn't stop Knight from filling out the form.

"When I read about the contest, I thought, 'If we win this thing he's going to have to marry me.' But I wasn't thinking I would win," Knight says. "So when our names got pulled I called him and said, 'Honey, we're getting married.' "

Knight and Swalla met while they were both serving in the Navy. Swalla worked as a communications specialist and Knight was attracted to his leadership and organizational skills.

They became friends and, over time, that friendship turned into a love that's endured a few deployments and relocations.

In 1998, Swalla retired as a lieutenant commander. A few years later, Knight was sent to work in Bremerton, Wash. After a two-year long-distance relationship, Knight moved back to the San Diego house she bought with Swalla.

But as they giddily unpacked boxes a few days before Thanksgiving 2001, they got an unexpected call.

"We were setting up house and Virginia got a call saying not to take the rest of her vacation because she was needed," remembers Swalla, 51. "It was traumatic. That was the phone call we did not want."

Knight wasn't told where she was going or for how long. It turns out she was sent to set up a hospital facility and provide care to soldiers and Afghans at Camp Rhino in Afghanistan. She was gone for six months.

"My claim to fame is that I went 37 days without a shower," she says. "We were given two prepackaged meals and three bottles of water a day. I had a Pepsi on Christmas. There were days when I didn't think I'd make it back home. But looking back on it now, it was a worthwhile experience, we were saving Marines and Afghanis."

Knight left the Navy six months ago but she still qualified to win the wedding ceremony. The wedding was held last weekend at downtown's El Cortez in front of 100 guests.

Because donations by local companies were so overwhelming, Operation I Do! was able to give away two weddings. In the first one, El Cajon's Christopher Miers and Shannon Grauer were married in November.

"This is just amazing," Knight says. "I've never seen this much dedication and support. It's nice for the military to be recognized because we make a lot of sacrifices in our job and there's not a lot of reward. You do it because you love it. So it's nice to see support out there during wartime."

Passages runs weekly in Currents. If you have a significant, life-changing event you'd like to share, e-mail Nina Garin at nina.garin@uniontrib.com.

View article in the Union Tribune Paper (.pdf).